MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. directed concerned agencies to come up with other measures to mitigate flooding such as the construction of water cisterns that could store floodwaters and be used during the dry season.
The President also raised the need to study the flood control measures of other countries that the Philippines could adopt, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said on Thursday.
She said that based on the government's estimate, the floodwaters accumulated during the past days due to continuous heavy rains could fill up at least 50,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
During a press briefing, Castro said at least 39 sites have been identified as water catchment basins.
"In relation to this, the President emphasized that the government must also study water management, or effective ways to utilize the water collected in rainwater cisterns," Castro said in Filipino.
"The President does not want the harvested rainwater to just be pumped out, but rather used during times of drought. Also included in the government's eyed solutions is the continuous upgrading of seawalls," she added.
